Landmark honors bestowed on Lindblom High School

After 91 years of service to Chicago students, the monumental and grandly scaled Robert Lindblom Technical High School was designated as an official Chicago landmark today by the City Council.

"Lindblom is an outstanding reflection of the generous status and investment that was afforded to public education in the early 20th century, virtues that we still embrace today," Mayor Richard M. Daley said. "The landmark designation will help preserve the building and reflect these ideals for many generations to come."

Designed by architect Arthur F. Hussander, the three story, H-shaped building was completed in 1919 in the Beaux Arts style, combining neo-classical design elements in an expression of civic pride and public service, according to the Commission on Chicago Landmarks, which recommended the school for landmark status earlier this year.

Located at 6130 S. Wolcott Ave. in West Englewood, the largely brick and terra cotta structure functioned for much of its history as a selective enrollment technical high school serving the entire South Side. As a technical high school, it included laboratories for zoology, chemistry, and physics, and manual training rooms for blacksmithing, forging, auto repair, electrical, carpentry, sheet metal, pottery, agriculture and printing.

In 2003, the school was closed for a major rehabilitation and restoration. It reopened in 2005 as the Lindblom Math and Science Academy, a city-wide selective enrollment high school.

As an official city landmark, the building will be protected from significant alternation or demolition. The designation applies to its exterior elevations and major historic interior spaces, including its entrance vestibule and lobby, auditorium, and vaulted study hall.